ABERDEEN, Scotland (Sept. 11, 2011) -- As the
43rd Walker Cup came to a
close with
a
wonderful closing ceremony, here are a few of
the weekend's highlights. I
encourage
everyone to
attend the next Walker Cup, on Sept. 7-8, 2013
at the National Golf Links
of America.

Most Emotional Match:

Stiggy Hodgson vs. Peter Uihlein. After having
Uihlein on the ropes 2-up
with 5 holes
to
play,
Hodgson lost four holes in a row, and a 2 and 1
victory belonged to Uihlein.
Said
Hodgson,
who
was on the verge of tears but still retained his
composure:

"He's world No. 2 for a reason. He's just as
good off the course as on."

Indeed, Uihlein showed a relaxed but focused
attitude all week. It's the kind
of
confidence
that is
allowing him to view his career as a marathon,
and not a sprint.

Most Pivotal Hole:

The 17th. A downhill shot towards the North
Sea provides visual drama;
wind blowing
across
forces players to hit a laser perfect long iron
shot to a three-tiered green.
Rounding out
the
picture
here is a crested green with pot bunkers and
severe mounds (plus gorse)
kicking any
pushed
shot
into possible oblivion. This is where Hodgson
lost all chance of bringing
home any
points
against
Peter Uihlein when his ball missed the green
right and kicked into a gorse
bush. Russell
Henley
told me that when Tom Watson phoned the
team (yes, he did that, and he
knows a
thing or
two
about links golf) he told them to play smart on
that hole.

Most Important Putt:

Jack Senior's birdie putt on the 18th hole to turn
an almost sure loss
against the solid
Nathan
Smith into a halve. Smith made a crucial par on
No. 17 to get to 1-up, then
followed
with
two
great shots at 18, forcing Senior to face a
do-or-die 30-footer. He
did, and the
crowd
went wild, sensing the GB&I team getting a
hand on the cup.

Most Improved Player:

Russell Henley. After losing a close foursomes
battle on Saturday morning
(partnered
with
Kelly
Kraft against Jack Senior and Andy Sullivan),
Steven Brown edged him in a
singles
match in
the
afternoon that went to the last hole. He sat out
on Sunday morning, but
came out
with
dogged
determination against singles opponent, and
one of the games bright stars,
Tom Lewis
of
England. Henley's solid into-the-wind iron shots
helped him tame the
beastly closing
holes,
that
play right into the wind, while Lewis struggled.
The resulting 4 and 2
victory, in the
first
afternoon singles match, set the tone for a huge
USA comeback. And by
the way,
Henley
plays,
walks, and makes decisions quickly. His
Nationwide Tour victory as an
amateur was no
fluke.

Most Valuable Player:

Rhys Pugh. Unbeaten in three matches, Pugh
brought home a key singles
victory on
Sunday
afternoon over U.S. Amateur Champion Kelly
Kraft. The youngest player in
the field at
17,
Pugh
wasn't fazed by the experience.

"I've never felt anything like this [level of
pressure] before. I just stayed
patient, and
trusted my
ability." For the record, GB&I Team Captain
Nigel Edwards pointed out Paul
Cutler as a
foursomes
"MVP" and his fellow Welshman Pugh as a key
player. We will be seeing
more of this
young
man.

Biggest Takeaways:

* Attending a Walker Cup is fantastic, on either
side of the pond. The next
Walker Cup
will
be
played at the National Golf Links of America in
2013. A suggested practice
session
location?
Bandon Dunes, Oregon of course, where the
newest course to open is Old
Macdonald,
designed
as a tribute to C.B. Macdonald, the designer of
the National Golf Links of
America and
winner
of
the first U.S. Amateur Championship.

* The level of sportsmanship displayed was
outstanding. And the respect
for the 10
year
anniversary of 9/11 was truly outstanding.
Players from both sides paid
tribute to the
victims
with special hats. (The USA's said "Never
Forget" while the GB&I's were
simple black
ribbons.) At
the closing ceremonies, Scotland's First Minister
Alex Salmond paid tribute
through a
moment of
silence. It seemed as if even the wind calmed
down as the significance of
"Golf's
Greatest
Contest" took it's context among the bigger
picture.